The present invention relates to systems and methods for media-on-demand. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems and methods for managing the availability of media-on-demand.
Since the inception of television, the number of television viewers has substantially increased to hundreds of millions of viewers in the United States and perhaps billions worldwide. These television viewers may typically have their own personal interests which may vary greatly from person to person. Broadcast television networks have sought to meet such viewer demands with specific programming shown at convenient viewing times. Cable, satellite, and broadcast television systems have tried to achieve the same goal by providing a large selection of television channels. Some known cable systems have provided services such as “pay-per-view” and “premium” channels to provide television viewers with greater programming variety and more control over their program viewing schedule. However, such known systems have been deficient in providing a sufficient number of programs that have sufficiently flexible broadcast times.
Video-on-demand systems have been developed that provide a large selection of programs with on-demand start times. However, these known systems have been deficient in appropriately managing the availability, the purchasing, the communications bandwidth, the duration, etc. of the programming.